Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
GETTING THERE
BY PLANE
Bulgaria has three international airports: Sofia, Varna, and Burgas, but most visitors
arrive at Sofia, currently served by 17 airlines from 47 European and Middle Eastern
cities, with a brand-new airport terminal that opened in 2006. At present travelers
from North America cannot fly direct into Bulgaria; the most frequent connections
are usually through London or Frankfurt.
Tip:
Hurrah for the entry of low-cost car-
rier Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), which now offers cheap flights from most destina-
tions across Europe into Bulgaria, usually via Budapest. There are also usually cheap
charter flights into Varna and Bourgas during the peak summer season; others fly into
Plovdiv to coincide with the skiing season.
BY TRAIN
Rail travel is very time-consuming (traveling from Budapest via Serbia takes 17-24
hr.; via Romania closer to 60) and trains and infrastructure in Bulgaria are not well
maintained. There is also the wearing potential of a trip ruined by thieves or hustlers.
Should you still favor the romance of rail, you will at least (assuming you're a citizen
of the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or the U.K.) not need a transit visa
through Serbia or Romania; for information on a Eurail Selectpass, which allows
travel between three to five East European countries, check out www.eurail.net;
though note that these passes seldom end up being real value for the money. Popular
routes are the Trans-Balkan, which connects Budapest with Thessalonniki, stopping
in Sofia (there's also a stop near Veliko Tarnovo); the Bulgaria Express which connects
Sofia with Moscow; and the daily Sofia-Belgrade line. In summer you can travel from
Bucharest, Budapest, Bratislava, and Prague to Varna and Burgas.
BY BUS
Buses are generally newer and cleaner than trains, and most major cities in Germany,
as well as Budapest, Prague, and Vienna, have regular bus service to Sofia. However,
due to distances and poor roads (and occasionally tedious and lengthy delays at bor-
der crossings), this can be a time-consuming way to get here. Most of the bus jour-
neys from western Europe pass through Serbia; as above, no transit visa is required.
For information about bus service from Sofia's relatively slick International Railway
Station, call
&
02/952-5004.
BY CAR & FERRY
Visitors traveling from western Europe by car will either take a ferry from Italy to
Greece, then head due north, or you will have to pass through Serbia, where you have
to pay a special car insurance, or Romania where road conditions are bad, and you will
ferry across the Danube from Vidin. Insurance is of course compulsory—it can either
be taken out beforehand or on the Bulgarian border.
GETTING AROUND
BY CAR
This is one destination where it is worth getting off the beaten track, and this means—
given that most signposts are written in Cyrillic—hiring a car and driver. If you have
the time to get lost, there are numerous car-rental companies to choose from (and
presently all you'll need is your national driver's license)—to get the best deal, surf
around and compare the usual big-name global brands with the highly reputable
www.avtorent.com (10-group cars from 14
€
€
-52
/$18-$66, including unlimited
